Oct. 7, 2009 (The Korea Times) -- By Kim Jae-kyoung
Staff Reporter
HSBC Holding, the U.K. banking giant, has no plans to join an uphill merger and acquisition (M&A) race here to take over local financial firms to be up for sale, including the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), the head of its Korean operations said Wednesday.
At a press conference held in Lotte Hotel, Matthew Deakin, head of HSBC (NYSE:HBC) Korea, ruled out the possibility of participating in the acquisition race for KEB, saying, "We have no plans to acquire any banks at this moment." He also excluded the possibility of bidding on Prudential Securities. (NYSE:PRU)
The sale of KEB, owned by U.S. buyout fund Lone Star, has been in deadlock since HSBC walked away from a deal to purchase a controlling 51.02-percent stake in the Korean lender in September 2008 in the wake of the global financial crisis.
However, the possibility is growing that KEB will soon be put up for sale after Lone Star Chairman John Grayken recently said that the Texas-based lender in six to 12 months.
Currently, KB Financial Group (NYSE:KB) , the nation's largest financial holding company, Korea Development Bank and Hana Bank, have set eyes on the lender which has strong foreign exchange and overseas networks.
In the meantime, HSBC launched the largest survey of emerging markets economic data, the HSBC Emerging Markets Index (EMI), which suggests emerging markets are likely to lead the global economic recovery.
According to the survey, the HSBC EMI surged from 50.7 in Q2 to 55.3 in the third quarter, signaling the strongest quarterly increase in emerging market manufacturing and service output since the second quarter of last year.
The index has rebounded sharply from an all-time low of 43.8 recorded in the final quarter of last year and 44.3 in the third quarter. Any reading below 50 indicates a contraction of output during the quarter while readings above 50 signal expansion.
"Asia's rebound remains firmly entrenched, driven increasingly by trade between emerging markets. The EMI index proves the resilience of the regional economies, including Korea, and points to a gradual decoupling process taking hold," HSBC senior Asia economist Frederic Neumann said.
Compiled with data from over 5,000 purchasing managers from companies in 13 countries, the HSBC EMI is an indicator of the economic and business health of the world's emerging and fast-growing markets.
